March 25, 2009

Welsh's fiction...

(click image to enlarge)THE SOAP GANG

The following newspaper article from The New York Evening Post, October 26, 1907. is based on the so-called recollections of W. H. Welsh, superintendent of the Canadian Detective Bureau, who claimed he was knowledgeable about the events at Skagway, Alaska in 1898. However judging from this article it is seriously wondered if Welsh had ever been to Skagway, let alone in 1898. It is my guess that he read about the shootout on Juneau Wharf and claimed to have been there as so many have before.

"SOAPY" SMITH: A REAL BAD-MANSKAGWAY, HIS LAST REFUGE, ROSE AGAINST HIMWith His Rifle He Went DownAlone to Stop an IndignationMeeting—Two Graves PromptlyAdded to the Little CemeteryOutside the Town.

[Special Correspondence of The Evening Post.]

CALGARY. Alb., October 19.—Many versions of the dramatic end of "Soapy" Smith and the subsequent clean-up of his gang in Skagway have been written, but it is probable that the facts have never been brought to light in all their details. Recently, W. H. Welsh, superintendent of the Canadian Detective Bureau, who was instrumental in "cleaning up" the gang, told the story this way:

The chief actor in the drama was Jeff Smith, universally known as "Soapy." His record included almost every known brand of swindle from gold-bricking to passing "phony" paper, although it is not know that he ever served time or was even convicted. His strong game was to stand in with the police in any city in which he operated. When his presence proved unwelcome he would depart for pastures new. He got his nickname as an itinerant soap merchant in Denver. He was the originator of selling soap wrapped in a $5 or $10 bill for one dollar; when the purchaser received the goods the wrapper was always missing. He also had a trick of using the soap to make a lather which he rubbed in his eyes to prove some wonderful quality he claimed for it.

"Soapy" made an ineffectual attempt to corral Cripple Creek in its boom days, but failed, and was driven out of that town. From one city to another he was invited to move until he reached Skagway. The reputation of that city, although it numbered some honest men in its population, was not then very savory. The authorities stole the land the town occupies from William Moore, and not to this day has he been paid for the land he preempted and occupied years before Skagway was ever thought of. So "Soapy" found the atmosphere congenial and proceeded to set up his kingdom of loot.

MECCA FOR "CROOKS."

From all over America criminals flocked to his standard. They grafted on the civic administration; they mulcted the saloons; they "buncoed" travelers and miners; they operated "fixed" gambling machines and roulette wheels; they played the three-card game, and "thimble-rigged" the innocent; they flim-flammed the miners who brought in dust, and after every other scheme had been worked, they looted the bank's vaults and held up men at the point of the gun. Pokes of dust deposited in the bank vaults mysteriously disappeared, and the claimants could never get satisfaction. It was the distrust of the local bank, engendered by "Soapy's" influence with it, that made the opening for the Canadian Bank of Commerce, of which it availed itself. The town marshal was a member of the gang, and the local newspaper was edited by another member, "Doc" Hornby. They levied toll on every man that came to the town or passed through it. If a man carried his valise across the wharf they controlled, it cost him two bits; if he set it down it cost him four bits for storage, to land a trunk cost $1.

"Soapy's" saloon was the headquarters of the gang. There the miners and strangers were "rolled." There, too, the famous tame eagle was kept. The place was arranged with a convenient back door for the escape of the "con" man, when he had secured his plunder. Things had been running with such barefaced boldness, robberies, shootings, and holdups had become so frequent, that the town’s business was being injured. Threats were made by business men that they would go over and resurrect the dying town of Dyea, and thus kill Skagway. The business men, in addition to paying tribute to "Soapy's" gang, saw that their business was to be ruined by the men to whom they were forced to pay tribute. Public indignation was thoroughly aroused.

THE LAST STRAW

Such were the conditions in Skagway when R. Stewart, a miner, arrived with a poke containing $2,800 in dust, which he cached in the safe of Isadore Kauffman, a reputable business man. Steward then started out into the town, and encountered Slim Jim. Stewart proved easy for Slim, who at once began to talk dust, for everything was dust in Skagway then. Stewart confided to Slim that he had the $2,800 in dust in Kauffman’s safe, and Slim at once said he could sell it for him at $22 per ounce, although dust was only worth $18. Stewart, however, fell into the trap, and agreed to get the dust and meet Slim’s friends. The two went together to Kauffman’s but the merchant was unable to give the miner a word of warning, well knowing that to cross the plans of the gang was as much as his life was worth. They went to "Soapy's" saloon, where other members of the gang were in waiting, and in a back room they took turns at appraising it, while the tame eagle blinked upon his perch, watching the proceedings. Called upon to notice some strange antic of the bird, Stewart turned his head, and his poke disappeared. A few minutes after, Tripp, one of the gang, was seen running out of the back door with the missing poke partly concealed under his coat.

Stewart's protests availed him nothing, and he set out to find town Marshal Taylor, who was erecting a house, doubtless made on the proceeds of similar deals to that just enacted. The marshal gave him no satisfaction, so he appealed to the business men of the town. This was the last straw which broke the patience of the respectable element of the town. Business men had realized that miners and others had already begun to give the town a wide berth. The owner of the Gold North Hotel called a meeting for that night in Sylvester's Hall.

A NIGHT MASS-MEETING.

When the crowd assembled, it was found the hall could not accommodate them, so the meeting adjourned to the wharf owned by the same firm. Although it was nine o'clock at night when they finally gathered on the wharf, it was broad daylight, the Arctic sun lighting up the scene as at midday. Guards were put out on the wharf sides, and at the land approach Frank Reid was stationed. The chairman, the hotel-keeper, who had called the meeting, then began to address the crowd. Whatever interest his remarks may have aroused was overshadowed by the tragedy which took place a few minutes after he began to speak.

Down the trail, intoxicated and swaggering, with a Winchester rifle in the hollow of his arm, came "Soapy" Smith. Word had been brought to him of the meeting and its purport, and with the nerve for which he was noted, he had taken his rifle to go forth single handed and cow or kill those who had dared to dispute his domination and despoiling of Skagway. Scores of times in the past, both in Skagway and the Western States, he had faced death from the other man's gun. Once in Skagway, a miner got the drop on him, and facing the loaded revolver he coolly pulled out his own gun, although he had been told to hold up his hands, and shot the miner dead. No man in Skagway could shoot quicker or straighter than "Soapy."

But that night he was "up against" a man who "gun play" was so fast and sure that, given the least bit of luck, it was almost a certainty, if shooting began, that Soapy’s fate would be sealed. The man was Frank Reid, surveyor and engineer of Skagway, who had roughed it and toughed it throughout the Western States. But "Soapy" surged on until ordered by Reid to stop. His answer was a point-blank shot fired at Reid at close range. Over-confidence at such close range, or the fatal atom of luck which swings the balance one way or the other, may account for "Soapy's" failure to hit Reid at that first surprise shot. "Soapy" made a frantic effort to pump another cartridge into the chamber of his rifle. In that instant Reid's revolver swung on his hip, clicked and missed fire. Surely was the goddess of Luck equally favoring both antagonists. Reid's luck had been handed to him when "Soapy's" first shot missed him. "Soapy's" came when Reid's revolver missed fire.

Two shots, one from Smith's rifle, the other from Reid's revolver, rang out, and horrified men on the dock saw Smith spin round and pitch forward, then roll over on his back and lie still while Reid sank slowly to the ground. "Soapy's" career of crime was ended. Reid was hard hit in the hip, and was carried to his office, where he lingered for a couple of days and then died.

Word quickly reached the gang that "Soapy" was dead, and that the citizens had formed a vigilance committee to clean out the rest. That was the signal for a stampede, and the rest took to the woods.

Meanwhile, the citizens lost no time. Capt. Sperry, formerly police captain at Portland, Ore., took the leadership, and called for volunteers to hunt down the fugitives. Two men were detailed at each of the wharves to see that none escaped by the sea route, while the trails were guarded and searched for escaping members of the gang. The Royal Northwest Mounted Police at White Horse were telephoned to and in two days thirty-seven members of the gang were captured. Three were missing for some days, but starvation brought them from their hiding places. Of the forty lined up before Judge Shellberg, nearly all were allowed to leave the country which they did in bunches of six and seven. Three, including the town marshal, were convicted and imprisoned.

But the troubles of the gang were not then at an end. Their records had preceded them, and the police at Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, and San Francisco refused to allow them to land. Juneau and Dawson City would not have them, and at that time there was no Nome.

Stewart recovered all his dust, with the exception of $670, which was never accounted for.

Both "Soapy" Smith and Frank Reid are buried in the little cemetery near the town, and after the tragedy Skagway became a safe and normal place. -R. F. R.

2 comments:

I am the great-granddaughter of the above-mentioned and maligned (!) detective William Howe Welsh. He definitely was in Skagway in 1898, as I've seen the records in Skagway to prove this. He was on his way to the Yukon and brought his family there. Whether or not he witnessed the events, I don't know, but he was a highly respected detective in the Yukon and responsible for tracking down a murderer in a famous case, going all the way to Utah before he brought him back to Dawson for hanging. We have a scrapbook of original clippings from his cases--although there's nothing in there about Skagway. He was from Portland, Ore., however, so it seems likely he was familiar with Smith and this case.--Heidi Welsh

It is a huge pleasure to meet you. I very much enjoy speaking with relatives of those who had dealings with my g-grandfather. I apologize if my comments offended you, it's just that I have hundreds of different historical versions of what took place in Skagway regarding Soapy and more then a few are not true, and some by people who were not even there. It is very frustrating when people did interviews or wrote about their experiences in Skagway and then added false story filler to make the story more appealing. It's frustrating because they may have great kernels of information that is true but then cloud it over with added false filler to make the story more exciting and this makes the whole interview suspect to a historian.

From your family history I do believe your g-grandfather Walsh was in Skagway, however, from this interview I am having trouble believing he was who was "instrumental in 'cleaning up' the gang" as written. Please let me explain so that you can understand why I thought perhaps that he had never been there.

I have studied the history of Skagway along-side the study of Soapy and I can positively say that "looting bank vaults, holding up men at gun-point (by Soapy or his gang), charging tolls on every person who came to town," did not occur.

The robbery of Stewart occurred in the alley beside Jeff Smith's Parlor, not inside, and had to do with a three-card monte game, not the eagle (Fitzhugh Lee).

William wrote, "Once in Skagway, a miner got the drop on him, and facing the loaded revolver he coolly pulled out his own gun, although he had been told to hold up his hands, and shot the miner dead." This story is completely false, never happened. The gunfight between Frank Reid and Soapy occurred much differently than described by your g-grandfather.

Because of the interview I wrongly concluded William might have never been to Skagway.

Search This Blog

Loading...

Soapy's on Facebook!

Jefferson R. Smith

Alias Soapy Smith(1860-1898)

Welcome

Welcome to the history blog of the Soapy Smith Preservation Trust and Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith. This site is an extension of my book, Alias Soapy Smith, the Life and Death of a Scoundrel, with the purpose of publishing new research, correcting mistakes and spotlight items of interest regarding American bad man, Jefferson Randolph "Soapy" Smith. Comments and questions are welcome.

How to become a "follower": Easy instructions

Click the blue box below that reads, "Join this site" and follow the directions.

OR click HERE to see easy to follow instructions on how to become a "follower." It's free and there's no spam.

Follow this blog. Click the blue box!

Follow by email

Receive our Newsletter!

JOIN BELOW

What is Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith?

Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith is for the more interested fans and family. Membership is free and you receive the newsletter with the most up-to-date information, along with reminders of important dates and events. No salesman will visit your door, or your computer.

Join Friends of Bad Man Soapy Smith here!

Click image to join

New Friendsof Soapy Smith

*J. Thompson (join 11/11/16): "Resident of Creede, CO."

*Jim Ayres (join 11/11/16): "We love creede and it's history. Have close friends living there that we visit often."

*Cam Cogsdill (join 09/12/16): "To learn more information. I own one of Soapy's guns and original gamblers boxes."

*Howard Cook (join 01/25/16): "I saw Soapy on AHC and was fascinated by his dual personality both generous and grifter."

*CarolAnn Mckinney (join 01/23/16): "I love the old west."

*Barbara Van Meter (join 01/14/16): "I grew up hearimg stories about Soapy and always have been interested in his life."

*Travis Martin (join 09/15/15): "I became fascinated by him while reading an autobiography by a distant family member of mine, who arrived in Skagway shortly after Soapy was killed. I read his Wiki article and I want to know more! Specifically about his motives."